Nancy Latham - March 7, 2022
In 2014, California voters passed Proposition 47, the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act: a law designed to help reverse mass incarceration. While the win was thrilling, success was not guaranteed – it all depended on the law’s implementation, which was in the hands of the Board of State and Community Corrections. To ensure that the law lived up to its promise, criminal justice advocates across California mobilized to engage in implementation advocacy. Going up against an institution that has traditionally sided with law enforcement, they won. The California Endowment, recognizing the magnitude of the win, commissioned a case study to tell its story. The story is rich with insights for those studying advocacy – including the role of implementation advocacy in policy success, what power-building can look like in the context of implementation advocacy, and how advocates can use narrative strategy to challenge the status quo.
